The Death
by Cheyennes
Summary: Coreen is gone and Vicki is left to move forward without her.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: I don't anything related to Blood Ties and sincerely hope no one tries to sue me at a later date. :) This is my second story and I appreciate all the reviews from my first attempt. This time the entire story is already written and I will try to post a chapter of it every couple days. I hope you enjoy it.

Vicki's Point of View:

"I can't believe this is happening. This just _**can't**_ be happening!"

That was the only coherent thought running through my mind and it had been running through it for a while. The day had started out so normally but what had happened later was anything but. If only I hadn't run out to pick up that Chinese food. If only I had just paid for it to be delivered. If only. . . . well, if only I hadn't let my life get so screwed up.

It was an important day. Today marked the twelve week anniversary since the day Coreen's heart was removed and then replaced. I had been very lucky that day and I had been able to cheat death of it's prize. The downside was that, according to Henry, I had given an IOU to the same demon that had caused the problem in the first place.

That day had been an emotionally traumatic one for both Coreen and I. For her it was because she had been possessed. Just a passenger in her own body. For me, it was being forced to try and choose between the two men in my life. Something I still hadn't been able to do.

Even with these issues, both of us had managed to move forward. We spent each day enjoying the routine we had established prior to "the incident", which was how we referred to it. Well, I guess the routine had changed a little bit. We hadn't seen either Mike or Henry since that night. Initially, I had been pretty angry with them both for not even checking in with Coreen afterwards. But in the end, that was okay, we were both doing fine on our own.

"Well, we had been doing fine on our own," I said softly to the room around me.

I had been staring straight ahead for a long time now, while these thoughts swirled in my mind. I was pointedly ignoring the noise that was going on around me. As if it wasn't there at all. If there's one thing I'm really good at, it's denial. Yet all the denial in the world wasn't going to be able to erase this day.

Dropping my gaze down into my lap, I looked at where Coreen's head rested. Her eyes were open but the spark that was her had been extinguished. Every time I looked at her I felt a pain in my chest at the reality of this loss. She was gone and I wasn't going to be able to cheat death this time.

My jeans were soaked through with her cold, congealing blood. When I had first touched her, it had been warm. I guess that was a weird thing to focus on, but it was further proof that time was passing around me. I just couldn't bring myself to care. I felt like I had been abandoned by the last person who truly knew me. Let's face it, I realize that I'm not all that easy to get to know. The very same characteristics that had once made me a fine homicide detective, were the same ones that created a barrier between me and the people around me. Besides Coreen, my mother, Mike, and Henry were the only people to whom I felt connected. Everyone else was just an acquaintance.

I was vaguely aware of people lightly touching me on my shoulder and speaking to me gently. Their words meant nothing to me. I was quickly discovering that it was a lot harder to be on this side of a murder than I had ever imagined. Everyone in the room wanted me to do the one thing that I wasn't willing to do. . . let her go. I knew intellectually that eventually I would need to let them take her away, but I wasn't ready yet. I heard the sound of a safety being released from a handgun before I even realized that the gun was in my own hand. The voices around me quieted and no one else dared touch me. Once the perceived threat was gone, numbness settled back over me and I curled down farther to rest my check on Coreen's forehead. I would protect her body from the procedures that everyone would want to perform. I only wish I had been able to protect her life as well.


	2. Chapter 2

Mike's POV:

It had been close to twelve weeks since I had last seen her. During that time, I had been returned to my place on the force and had been working hard to regain the confidence of my coworkers. There were times I had given thought to stopping by to check on Vicki, or at the very least on Coreen, but I had always talked myself out of it. After all, I had made my feelings very clear that night and I had known that Vicki would need some time to process things. I was well aware that I had basically told her to make a choice between me and the vampire. I had also known it would take her some time to figure out her feelings. Emotional self-awareness was not one of Vicki's strongest characteristics.

Up until an hour ago, I had thought everything in my life was pretty much back on track. My cases were going well and they were all normal. Not a demon or psychic in the whole bunch. Then I received the call asking me to come here. Initially the details had been sketchy but enough to cause my heart to race in alarm. The general gist was that there some sort of an armed standoff going on in Vicki's office. When I arrived I found out that was not really the case. As of yet, I hadn't asked for a formal case summary. All I had wanted, upon my arrival, was to see Vicki and assure myself that she was okay. Unfortunately, I could tell that she wasn't.

Many of my colleagues were sitting around in the outer office where Coreen usually sat, while I stood leaning against the door frame looking into the inner room. What I was looking at was heartbreaking in the extreme. This wasn't just another murder and the people involved weren't just strangers to comfort. Coreen was clearly dead and it was clear, from what I could see of Vicki, that she was barely holding it together. The gun in her left hand was the reason why I had been called. While force could have been used to remove the body from Vicki's grasp, most of the people here knew her and respected her. Someone had thought that perhaps I could defuse the situation. I sincerely hoped so.

I turned my back on the inner office and quietly asked my partner, Dave, to fill me on on what he knew. He looked more than happy to do so. After all, this case had the potential to be a disaster.

"We got a 911 call from the lawyer who practices out of the next office. He was leaving for the day and saw that the front door to the office was open. That's apparently fairly unusual so he decided to step inside to wish the ladies a good night. He said he really didn't know Vicki besides the occasional "hello" when they passed in the hall. He called her name a couple times from out here and then walked in this far and saw Vicki and her assistant. He thought maybe the assistant had fallen."

I immediately responded, "Her name was Coreen Fennell and she was more than just an assistant. Vicki had pretty much taken Coreen under her wing like a little sister. They had gotten close and, if asked, I know Vicki would tell you she considered her to be family. Coreen doesn't have any family of her own."

Dave paused for a few moments to jot some of the information down before continuing, "Okay. Anyway, the lawyer says Vicki didn't acknowledge his calls at all, and with her back to the door, he had to step all the way inside to see what had happened. It wasn't until he was in the inner office that he realized Ms. Fennell was dead and that Vicki appeared to be injured. In a panic, he ran back to his own office to use the phone. When the paramedics arrived, they did a cursory review of Vicki. As far as we've been able to tell, the blood she is covered in belongs only to Ms. Fennell. The investigation had been moving along fairly smoothly. Where we ran into a problem was when we tried to remove the body from the scene. Vicki pulled a gun out from somewhere and took the safety off. We pretty much decided that we could use some help before the situation escalated. We dimmed the lights in her area of the office to reduce some of the stimulation and stepped out here. Thus the phone call to you."

I turned back around and looked at Vicki's body hunched over Coreen protectively and I wondered how I was going to fix this. I had left a message for the one other person that might be able to help me, but as of yet I hadn't heard anything back. Of course, it was only a little after sunset now. Dave's hand on my shoulder drew my attention back to him.

"I know things aren't great between the two of you. At first I hesitated calling you because I've noticed she hasn't been around the precinct. I didn't even know if you were speaking to one another, but under the circumstances, you were the first person that came to mind as a possible help. Well, that Fitzroy guy also came to mind, but I didn't know how to reach him. Anyway, Crowley wanted us to forcibly disarm her and remove the body but I bought some time to see if you could help."

The thought of someone trying to disarm Vicki by force sent a chill down my spine. That would almost certainly lead to bloodshed and I highly doubted it would be Vicki's. Her vision might be a little hazy but her instincts were dead on. Taking a deep breath, I finally stepped fully into the inner office and started to close the door behind me.

"Man, are you sure this is a good idea?" Dave inquired.

"It may not be one of my better ones but I know I'll do this better without an audience than with one. After all, she's not going to shoot me."

As Dave removed his hand from the door, I was able to close it fully. I just hoped that what I had just said was actually true. It was quite possible that in some corner of Vicki's mind she might somehow blame me for this. Maybe if I had been here. . . . .


	3. Chapter 3

Henry's POV:

I woke as the sun faded and pulled on some clothing, preparing for another night of sketching. My life just wasn't the same now that my personal involvement with Vicki was over. While my editor was much happier with the rate I was turning out issues, I missed the excitement of working with Vicki on her cases. In general I just missed the excitement of being around her. But I had told her to make a choice the night Coreen had almost died. That had put her in a tailspin. She hadn't called me since that night but I had continued watching over her. Just out of her sight. Eventually she would make a decision about her future and I wanted to be around to hear it.

I didn't expect Vicki to be doing anything even potentially dangerous this night, so she wouldn't need me. While Vicki and I hadn't spoken, Coreen and I had managed to keep in touch without Vicki's knowledge. She was kind enough to keep me updated on cases that had the potential to be dangerous. On those nights I made sure I was close enough to intervene if Vicki got in over her head. That hadn't happened yet.

As I walked out into the living area I noticed the red light blinking on my answering machine and absently touched the play button as I walked by. Lately, it had only contained messages from telemarketers. You couldn't get away from them even if you had departed the mortal life. A voice that I hadn't expected immediately caught my attention.

"Fitzroy, this is Celluci. I need you to get to Vicki's office as quickly and quietly as you can. Something's gone wrong and I may need your help to deal with it."

The time stamp indicated the message had come in just over an hour ago. The fact that Detective Cellucci had called _**me**_ clearly indicated that this was a crisis. He and I had a deep animosity between us. The only time we ever worked together was when Vicki was in danger.

I just couldn't figure out how Vicki had gotten herself into trouble working the stolen heirloom case that Coreen had explained to me. Of course, this _**was**_ Vicki, and somehow she always managed to make things much more complicated than they appeared on the surface. I grabbed my coat and used the speed of my kind, rather than my car, to get to Vicki's office.

I noticed the empty cop cars that were gathered in front of the building. Jumping higher than any human ever could, I landed on the window ledge outside of the portion of the office where Vicki had her desk. I smelled the overwhelming scent of drying blood before my mind absorbed the images I was seeing through the glass. I could see the profile of Vicki's pale face and that she was cradling Coreen's body which had no heartbeat. Now I knew why Detective Cellucci was here. This was a murder scene.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Thank you for all the reviews thus far. I'm glad that everyone seems to be enjoying the story. This chapter is fairly short but I wanted to keep one POV per chapter. Look for Chapter 5 to be posted on Friday.

Mike's POV:

When I first tried to approach Vicki, her body began to betray signs of tension. Deciding that a direct frontal approach wasn't going to work, I sat down in the far corner of the room and began talking. I avoided anything having to do with the present moment and spoke about our past and what I had been up to recently. Occasionally I tossed in questions for her to answer, but as of yet, she hadn't responded. Not that I really expected this to be that easy.

When I saw movement at the window, I motioned with my hand for Fitzroy to quietly enter. I wasn't sure how I was going to explain his presence if Dave entered the room, but I'd cross that bridge later. He hardly made a sound but I knew the second Vicki became aware of his presence Her shoulders slumped even further into a position of total dejection and she tightened her grip on both her gun and Coreen. I watched as Fitzroy absorbed the situation and considered his options. I also realized he was listening to the rest of the team hanging out in the outer office area. What he could hear and what he could see would quickly bring him up to speed on the problem.

"Detective Cellucci," he nodded in my general direction though his eyes stayed on Vicki.

By the time he was ready to move closer to her, she was sitting upright and I saw the first tear slowly roll down her face and heard the first catch in her breathing. She was continuing to hold it together by pure will alone. But the look Fitzroy and I shared contained the knowledge that she wouldn't be able to go on like this for much longer.

I watched with no small shred of jealousy as Henry walked behind Vicki and stopped to rest his palm on the top of her head. When she didn't flinch away he stroked his hand down her hair and rested it on her shoulder before kneeling down behind her. He leaned close to her ear but his voice carried across the distance to me.

"It's time to let her go Vicki. She's already moved on. It's time for you to do the same."


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: Since I won't be back in town until Tuesday, I wanted to give you two installments at once. Here are the next two POV's.

Vicki's POV:

When Mike had first entered the room I ignored him. After all, he'd been ignoring me for weeks so why should I listen to him now! Maybe if he and Henry had been around this never would have happened!

My breath caught in my throat as I realized how untrue that was. The reality was this had happened solely because of me and well I knew it. Coreen's attacker had waited long enough for me to return to the office from my lunch run. If he had been a human, I would have had somewhere to focus my rage. Unfortunately for me, a demon had done the deed and then disappeared before my very eyes. I was well aware that Coreen would never have been intimately acquainted with their kind if not for me.

To my disgust, a tear spilled from my brimming eyes. What right did I have to cry over my loss? She would still be alive if not for me.

When Henry entered the room, I knew that the end of my solitude with Coreen was over. I might be able to ignore one of the men but not both of them. Especially since they were clearly working towards the same goal. When Henry spoke into my ear I listened to the words. I knew she had moved on. How could I avoid the reality when I held her cold body in my arms? As for myself, I knew I would never really move on from this moment. My demon had tricked me again. He had allowed me to save her life, and then when my guard was relaxed, he ordered one of his minions to take her away from me.

Henry's body surrounded mine from behind as he lowered himself to his knees. He ran both of his hands gently down my arms. When he got to my left hand he eased the gun out of my reach. I shifted my gaze and watched him entwine his fingers with mine. I didn't even really feel it but my eyes showed it was happening. His other hand had done the same with the one that I had under Coreen's body. I leaned my head back slightly until it was resting against his shoulder. Mike had approached from my side and eased his own arms around Coreen's body as Henry slowly pulled me away. A split second before I was separated from her, I pulled my left hand away from Henry's grasp and rested it over her face. I closed her eyelids on the vacant stare and took a shaky breath before closing my own eyes. I heard Mike moving around resettling her body on the floor as Henry turned me sideways in his grasp. He removed my glasses, handing them to Mike, before pressing a kiss to my forehead. I felt the sensation of rising and knew that Henry had stood with me cradled in his arms.

Henry's POV:

Now that I had Vicki in my arms, I was at a loss as to what I should do next. Her clothes were crusted in dried blood and she felt so cold to the touch. I was also well aware that she had yet to speak a word.

"Now what?" I asked the detective.

"She's going to need to be questioned but not in her current state. I'd take her back to my place but I have a feeling I'm not going to be released for a while."

"So I can take her away?"

I couldn't believe it would be that easy. On the television shows, the witnesses were always questioned immediately, regardless of their emotional state. Maybe Vicki's status as a former detective gave her a certain amount of latitude. Or maybe Mike's involvement had something to do with it.

"That's fine. Take her to your place and keep her there. I'll come by when I'm done here."

"Okay, but how exactly are you going to explain my presence? You can't very well tell them that I jumped up to the window."

"I'll tell them that you came up Vicki's fire ladder. Since the fire escape is around the back of the building, she has one of those rope ladder things in her desk."

I watched as Mike rummaged through her drawer and pulled out the very item he had just mentioned. He hooked it on the window ledge and tossed it out. I was rather impressed with his creative thinking. Walking over to the armoire, I grabbed one of Vicki's long, woolen coats and tossed it over her. Once she was covered from the top of her head to her feet, I walked in the direction of the exit. Mike turned the doorknob and the underlying chatter that had been going on came to a sudden halt as I stepped out. I watched as Mike motioned his partner and the other crime scene techs into the area that I had just left. No one said a word until I exited the office and then I heard everyone begin firing questions at the detective. Especially questions about how exactly I had gotten involved and where exactly I was taking their witness. I quickly came to the conclusion that I wouldn't want to be in his shoes.


	6. Chapter 6

Mike's POV:

Once Vicki had departed with Henry, I focused on answering the million and one questions that I heard.

"No, she didn't say anything. Yes, we will need to question her but we aren't going to get anything from her until she's more herself. Yes, Dave, Fitzroy is taking her back to his place. No, Dave, he didn't fly here. I let him up with the fire ladder so that he didn't have to explain himself to you."

I watched as the crime scene boys did their job. Watched as Coreen's body was bundled up into the body bag and placed on the gurney that would take her to the morgue. Watched and wished that I could turn back time so that Vicki would never have to experience this event. Unfortunately, I didn't have those powers and either did Fitzroy. The best I could do was help Vicki get through this as painlessly as possible.

I checked my watch and realized that two hours had passed since the initial call. I was the last one left in the office, staring at the pool of dried blood on the floor and the spatters that were elsewhere. I made a call to one of the specialized cleaning services who could take away all the signs of the events that had happened here. The last thing I wanted was for Vicki to have to come back here with things looking as they did. Once I was assured that someone would be on-site within the hour, I left the office and headed in the direction of Fitzroy's penthouse.

Henry's POV:

Once I left the office, I remembered that I hadn't brought my car. While it wouldn't tire me to carry Vicki back to my place, I realized that I needed to get her into a warm, safe, and quiet environment as soon as possible. I hailed a cab and one immediately pulled over. I must have found the only remaining nice cabbie in the city. He actually got out of the car and came around to open the door for us without me using any persuasion at all. Once we were all settled back into the car, I provided him with my address and we were quickly on our way. In mere minutes we were back at my building and I was paying the man and adding a healthy tip. Vicki had remained still throughout the trip though I knew she wasn't sleeping. It was almost as if she'd shut her mind down and now her body was doing only the necessary physical tasks for survival.

Upon entering my home, I quickly settled her on the couch before heading to the kitchen. When I had first met Vicki the only food item in my house had been wine. Now I had snacks, water, and juice which proved just how important Vicki was to me. I always wanted her to be comfortable here. Once I had poured a glass of juice, I returned to the living area. Picking Vicki up again, I settled her into my lap. Her eyes remained closed, her lashes resting on bruise like circles under her eyes. Picking up the glass I pressed it to her lips. She took one small sip and then turned her face into my shoulder. I guess I could have forced the issue but I chose not too. Eventually she would realize she was thirsty once the shock had lessened.

Pulling the coat away from the rest of her body, I was reminded that she was still covered in dried blood and other bodily fluids. Getting her clean would probably go a long way to restoring her mental health.

"Vicki, how about a warm bath?"

I remembered her commenting once before on the size of my whirlpool tub and asking if I played with my food there. It definitely would be large enough for a couple adults though I had never used it for that purpose.

I let a few minutes pass before I decided that she wasn't going to answer my question. With that being the case, I made the decision for her. I stood and placed her on her feet. Her eyes opened and once I was sure she was steady, I began to lead her to the bathroom. When we arrived she settled herself on the toilet seat and I started a one sided conversation with her. I talked about the storyline for the current novel I was designing while I ran the water in the tub. I even managed to find a sample bottle of bubble bath to toss in for good measure.

"Ready?" I asked her once the tub was full.

She nodded but when she went to stand her knees gave out. She caught herself on the vanity and managed to get herself steady again without any help from me. The problem now was that I didn't want to leave her alone. What if she slipped? Or feel asleep in the water? At the same time I knew there was no way she was going to let me undress her. Shock or no shock.

"Sit back down for a minute," I instructed.

Once she was settled I bent to remove her shoes. I'd decided that everything else could just go in the tub with her. I'd get her out of the clothes as quickly as possible before the blood had a chance to leach out of the fabric.

"Alright, in you go," I said as I scooped her back up.

I settled her into the water and was pleased to note that the bubbles covered her completely. I reached into the water and began to unbutton her shirt. I got about three buttons undone when she pushed my hands away.

"I can do it myself. I've been dressing and undressing myself for a long time now," she said in a quiet but firm voice.

I turned my head away to hide the smile I was fighting. I was happy to see this first spark of her personality returning.


	7. Chapter 7

Vicki's POV:

Henry had brought me back to his place to give me some time to pull myself together. I knew that I needed it. I had been listening to him talk to me though I was only comprehending bits and pieces of the conversation. When he settled me into the warm, scented water, I felt like I could just float away. At least I felt that way up until his hands brushed against the skin under my shirt. I shivered at the sensation and told him that I could do it myself. It probably took me three times as long as it would have taken him since I really had to concentrate. But he was patient. I handed him my wet clothing items and settled back against the rim of the tub, sinking into the warm water up to my chin. I closed my eyes again.

"Thanks."

"You are very welcome, Victoria."

Nothing was said for a long, long time. I knew Henry was sitting on the toilet lid watching me. When the water started to cool, he gently grabbed my chin and turned my face towards him. The movement pulled me from the twilight state I was in,

"I'm going to go get you some clothes to wear. Keep your eyes open and stay awake until I get back."

I nodded my head before resting it back against the rim of the tub. I could definitely think of better ways to die than drowning. He left the door to the bathroom open, probably so he could keep an ear, if not an eye, on me. I noticed movement from the corner of my eye and turned in that direction. I don't know what I expected to see, but I had expected to see something. Yet there was nothing there.

"Just a product of my imagination and being overly tired," I thought to myself before settling back and closing my eyes.

Mike's POV:

I arrived at the penthouse wondering how Vicki was doing. I had almost called to check up on Vicki but I figured Fitzroy probably had his hands full. Plus, if Vicki knew I was coming, she would probably tense up in anticipation of the questions ahead. She had been a detective. She knew exactly how things worked.

I knocked lightly on the door and was greeted by the vampire himself carrying a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt.

"How is she?" I asked quietly.

"Very tired and fighting sleep every step of the way. She's in the bathroom getting cleaned up."

I held out my arms for the clothes he was holding and was surprised when he immediately handed them over to me.

"Ask her whatever questions you need to now, Detective. I don't want her to have to keep reliving the moments. She'll do enough of that on her own without any help from us."

I nodded my head. Chances are this would be my one chance to catch her with her defenses down. Vicki was always much more talkative, and less defensive, when she was tired. Back when we were still a couple we had some of our best talks before falling asleep.

I walked into the open door of the bathroom and was struck by the warmth of the room. Even with the door open it felt like it was at least 95 degrees. With her eyes closed, she stuck her hand out of the tub while at the same time saying my name.

"How did you know it was me?" I asked.

"I recognized your walk and your cologne."

"How are you doing?"

"Fine."

"Okay, let's try a different question. How are you really doing Vick?"

Her bloodshot eyes opened and looked into mine. Despair was visible in their depths. I had never seen an expression like this on her face before. Even when she found out she was losing her vision she hadn't looked like this.

"I would assume I'm doing just about as well as anyone who had killed their best friend."

Now that was a response that I hadn't expected but probably should have anticipated. I knew in my heart that Vicki hadn't taken Corrine's life but she was clearly accepting the responsibility. Now was my best chance to get my questions answered.

"I know you didn't kill her."

"I might as well have. My personal demon sent somebody to finish her off. Henry warned me that making a deal with him wouldn't work out. I just didn't want to believe it. At that particular moment saving Corrine's life was the most important thing to me. But after making that decision, I had expected her to outlive me. Not live for 3 months and then have one of his minions take her away."

"Did you see who did it?"

"Yes, but you're going to have to say that I didn't. He disappeared before my eyes. Poof. He wasn't human, Mike. You're not going to be able to punish him with human laws."

As much as I would have liked to argue with her, she was right. How exactly was I going to prosecute a demon? How would we keep him in jail when he could disappear into thin air? I closed my own eyes in frustration. My life had taken quite a wild turn over the last year. I just wanted to have someone to throw in jail and hold responsible for Corrine's death and Vicki's pain. Now it looked like I would have to pursue a false investigation and just help Vicki move on. That is, if she could move on.

Vicki's POV:

Mike looked frustrated and I just couldn't deal with his feelings right now. I wanted to be left alone to lick my wounds and come to terms with my ultimate failure.

"Mike, you need to leave," I said.

A hurt expression crossed his face before he asked why.

"I want to get out of the tub before I shrivel into a prune."

"Oh, okay. I'll be out there with Fitzroy."

I waited until he had firmly closed the bathroom door behind him before I stepped out onto the bath mat. Looking back towards the water, I realized it was a light pink from Coreen's blood. Nausea churned in my stomach and I made it to the toilet just in time. After a not so pleasant five minutes of dry heaving, I managed to pull myself together just in time to hear the knock on the door and Henry's voice.

"Are you okay, Vicki?"

"No, but I'll live. I'll be out in a few minutes."

My voice was raspy but I knew Henry had been able to hear me. Shakily walking back to the tub, I released the stopper to let the water drain. Once all the pink water was gone, I swished some clean water around to make sure the pink was really gone. I returned to my perch on the toilet seat and began to dress in the warm sweatpants and flannel shirt. They smelled like Henry and I couldn't resist rubbing my face against the soft fabric of the shirt. A jaw cracking yawn reminded me that I needed to get out of the bathroom. I walked over to the door and opened it walking right into both men. I didn't even have to say anything. They both backed away into the living room with chagrined expressions. If I had been feeling better I would have given them a hard time. But I wasn't up to it. I just wanted to curl up somewhere for a while.


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Note: This will be the final chapter of the story. I'm glad everyone enjoyed it. There will be more installments in the future.

Henry's POV:

Despite her exhaustion, Vicki looked good. . . real good. Her face was flushed pink and I could smell the sweet scent of blood just under the skin. I remembered how hungry I was and that I hadn't had the opportunity to feed before this night's events had begun. I pushed the need away as I saw Detective Celucci stiffen in response to Vicki swaying on her feet. I quickly put my arm around her to steady her and began walking in the direction of my spare bedroom. She followed without complaint until we were almost there. Suddenly she stopped dead and whipped her head to look over her shoulder.

"What is it Vicki?"

She turned back towards me with a puzzled expression on her face.

"I thought I saw something. The same thing happened in the bathroom too."

"You're so tired I'm not surprised that you're seeing things. You need some rest."

We started moving again and this time made it to the goal. The covers were already pulled back on the bed and she easily slid between them. Leaning over, I pressed a kiss to her forehead with all intention of leaving her to rest. However, her hand suddenly wrapped around my wrist and I could read the need on her face. She didn't want to be alone, but she wasn't going to be able to say it. Knowing that Cellucci was in the other room, I decided not to get into the bed with her, though that was where I would have liked to be. Instead I gently pulled my arm from Vicki's grasp and walked over to get a chair to pull closer to the bed. I positioned the chair so that I could easily run my fingers over her hair but so that my back was against the same wall as the headboard. I felt that she would rest better if she didn't think I was reading her expressions. It was only about five minutes later when I realized she was already deeply asleep. I made the decision to leave her with the Detective so that I could feed. I wouldn't be of much help if my hunger began to override my common sense.

Mike's POV:

I breathed a sigh of relief when Fitzroy left to run an errand. Ha! I knew what he was really doing. The way he had looked at Vicki when she left the bathroom was a dead giveaway. I'd seen mortal men give women a hungry look but his hungry looks were a whole different thing. Walking across the room, I found myself staring into the bedroom where Vicki was resting. She had curled up into a small ball on the very edge of the bed. If she moved any further she would be on the floor.

"What am I going to do with you?" I whispered aloud.

At one time I had thought Vicki and I had found the real thing together. I had thought we would marry, have children, and grow old together. But it had all fallen apart. Then this last year those same feelings began to stir and I thought maybe we'd been given a second chance. Unfortunately, all the supernatural stuff seemed to be getting in the way. And let's not forget Fitzroy, he was purposely trying to get in the way. I didn't know what he thought was going to happen. That he would be able to convince Vicki to become like him? I highly doubted that. I knew the way Vicki thought and there was no way she would believe that type of sacrifice would work out. She would think about what would happen if she and Henry grew tired of each other. She would still be a vampire. Did she really want to live for generations alone? Watch her friends and family die?

I was distracted from these depressing thoughts by the sound of a whimper and then her voice calling out for Coreen. I couldn't watch her suffer when I could hopefully stop it. I knew she was probably relieving the moment of Coreen's death. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up with PTSD, post traumatic stress disorder, from the whole experience.

I approached the bed and decided I really didn't want to wake her if I could avoid it. She was still exhausted. However, I needed to get her mind on a different track. Walking around the bed, I slid on top of the covers and moved up behind her. As I had hoped, I didn't even need to touch her. She scooted back against me so that we were spooning. She had gravitated to my warmth even though I wasn't under the covers. My name was whispered and a small smile curved her lips. I had clearly accomplished my mission. Her mind had moved on.

Vicki's POV:

I woke to the warmth of Mike's body behind me. That was reassuring. The tears on my face were not. Coreen's death rushed back over me.

I glanced at the clock and realized only three hours had passed since Henry had brought me here. I was exhausted but sleep was obviously going to be elusive.

I looked around the dimly lit room and saw that same blur of color out of the corner of my eye that I had seen twice before. I tried focusing on it. I wished I had my glasses because I was certain they would help me make sense of what I was seeing. The colors almost made a figure. I quietly left the bed and walked in that direction. It wasn't long before I stopped dead in my tracks. Apparently, I was still sleeping. I looked over my shoulder expecting to see myself in the bed, but I wasn't. I took a deep breath and turned my head back to the front. The vision in front of me was a blurry picture of Coreen. But not the Coreen I had seen just this past night, in fact, not a Coreen I had ever seen. She was wearing a light blue dress, non-Goth make up, and had a smile on her face that I had never seen before.

"Coreen," I said aloud.

"Vicki, you won't believe all the things that have happened. It's so incredible."

Her voice wasn't heard aloud but I could hear it in my head. In one of my more pessimistic moments, I would say that I was just making up this whole experience. But I knew that I wouldn't have imagined this particular picture of Coreen. I would have imagined her looking like her usual self.

"Vicki, can you hear me? I've been working hard on making this connection. It's one of the cool things I've been told I can do."

"Yes, I can hear you," I said with tears streaming down my face. My knees weakened and I found myself kneeling on the floor. I tried to choke out an apology for what her involvement in my life had cost her but her chattering enthusiasm interrupted me.

"Vicki, thank you for everything you did for me. I don't think you had any idea about just how dark my life was before I met you. You gave me a purpose and you never looked down on me as if I were crazy. In fact, I lived more in the time I was with you than I had in all the time before that. I don't regret a thing. . . neither should you. Things worked out the way they were meant to work out. There are things I can't tell you but I can tell you that I'm happier now than I have ever been in my whole life. Can you feel it?"

On the heels of her question, I was bathed in a warm, giddy feeling. All of the things I normally worried or obsessed about were suddenly gone. I felt like I was safe and had completed my task successfully. The feeling was short lived and gradually faded away but I continued to feel a sense of peace. I was startled as warm hands wrapped around my shoulders from behind.

"Are you okay?," Mike's voice whispered in my ear as I continued to watch Coreen's image.

I managed to nod my head as Coreen's voice filled it again,

"You have a lot to do before you can join me, Vicki. Remember that I will be watching over you. As will Mike and Henry. You have a destiny to fulfill and they will both play a key part in it. Try very hard not to screw things up."

She gave me another smile and this one I was familiar with. It was the one she used whenever she thought she knew more than me about a particular topic.

"Get some sleep, you'll need it."

Those were the last words I heard before she turned and faded away. Even though her final words weren't particularly reassuring, I felt as though a million pounds had been lifted from my shoulders. I had actually imagined her trapped in some hell type dimension being punished for my stupidity. The fact that she was happy and in an entirely different place removed some of the guilt. That wasn't to say that I wouldn't trade my life to get her's back, but knowing she wasn't suffering made all of the difference.

I turned in Mike's arms and took in his worried expression. I gave him a ghost of a smile.

"I'm going to be fine Mike. It's going to take some time but everything will work out in the end the way it was meant to."

From the expression on Mike's face, he clearly thought I was rambling in exhaustion. He gave me a patronizing smile before helping me to my feet and tucking me back under the covers. Normally I would have smacked him for the expression he was wearing but I let him get away with it this time. Later, I would tell both Henry and Mike about my conversation with Coreen, but for now, I would just hold it close to my heart and take the reassurance it had provided.


End file.
